Music Noted in Brief; 12th-Century Works From Boston Camerata

By Bernard Holland

Published: February 23, 1987

The Boston Camerata's musical journey into the 12th century Thursday night evoked the sense of vast distance, adventure and freedom that we often associate with space travel. The music of Abelard, and of the troubadour poets and ecclesiastical musicians surrounding him, survives only in imprecise outline. We perceive it distorted and incomplete, as if through an imperfect telescope.

But if the rhythmic and melodic practices of the time can only be explored and guessed at, the spirit of this age - its reconciliation of sensuous beauty with Christian ecstasy -survives with some exactitude. Thus Thursday's re-creations at Merkin Concert Hall of churchly plaints and celebrations, together with their secular companions, had an ''authenticity'' of attitude if not in style.

Indeed, this was a music originally created to serve its texts, and the Boston Camerata, with its varied small groupings of singers, was always ready to stretch a phrase, adjust a tempo, create a forceful accent, in order to bring these largely Latin texts to stage center. This was also an age of spiritual discovery and classical resurgence. Thus while Thursday's singing techniques may or may not have represented ancient practices, the unbuttoned enthusiasm probably did.

It seemed appropriate as well that the 10 singers and two string players in this excellent collection were never singled out for their specific contributions to the program. So much of this age's great art was conceived, and has come down to us, in anonymity, and so the tradition continued here.